Installation and Voicing of Your Organ

The selection of your organ is one that can be an incredibly complex and thorough process. However, a poor installation or lack of voicing can prevent you from hearing all the color, nuance, and expression of the organ. For this reason, we will discuss speaker placement options early in the discussion when selecting a console. On delivery day, we will experiment with various positions and directions for the speakers to provide the most authentic pipe sound for the congregation.

Depending on the location of the console relative to the speakers, we may need to "fish" speaker wire through an attic, under the floor, or through pre-installed wire runs. If your church is considering a newly constructed or renovated sanctuary, it's important to work with us and the architects/engineers on designed speaker chambers, cable routing, and electrical needs.

Once everything is in place, we'll spend several hours listening to the organ in various solo and ensemble registrations, making adjustments to individual note or voice volumes and color. This process is known as voicing the organ. In a true pipe organ, the pipe organ builder will physically make adjustments to the pipes to alter the articulation or volume and tuning of the pipe. Allen Organs stand out in that we can truly replicate this process in the digital console, unlike any other manufacturer. This voicing process is one of the most critical steps! A very expensive organ voiced incorrectly can be less satisfying than a more economical option that has been voiced appropriately for the environment.